U.S. Patrol Torpedo Boats in World War II, 1939 - 1945 Review

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U.S. Patrol Torpedo Boats in World War II, 1939 - 1945 ReviewA lot of the information given in this book is simply wrong. Some of the more obvious errors associated with the technical aspects of the boats include:
a. The V-drive system is described as the two wing engines driving the center shaft. The two wing engines on an ELCO were not coupled to the center shaft. They drove their respective shafts through a V-drive (essentially a transfer case similar in concept to those fitted to four-wheel drive vehicles) while the center engine drove its shaft directly.
b. The text states that Higgins boats from PT197 on came from the factory fitted with the MK13 torpedoes. Photos clearly show the RON15 boats (PT 201-218) operating in the Med fitted with the MK19 tubes and the RON23 boats (241-244, 277-288) at the squadron's commissioning ceremony also fitted with the MK19 tubes. This is consistent with the Higgins factory drawings (available from PT BOATS INC for decades), which indicate the 302 boat as the first to be factory fitted with the MK13.
c. The text designates the Dewandre turrets as MK17 mounts. The MK17 mounts were the Bell Aircraft designed mounts fitted to the Higgins, Huckins, and 80' ELCOs and bore no resemblance to the Dewandre mounts, several versions of which were fitted to the 70' and 77' ELCOs .
d. The 105 boat is described as carrying eight `Type C' depth charges. The depth charges are MK6; the racks in which they are carried are Type C.

e. Higgins PTs are described as having two 700 gallon gasoline tanks located in the engine room. No fuel tanks were mounted in the engine room on a Higgins; rather, there were two tanks each in separate compartments fore and aft of the engine room.
Similar errors are contained in the operational material. For example:
a. The four 70' Canadian Power Boat Company boats (PT368-371), along with PT 362-367, are repeatedly listed as RON11 boats. RON11 comprised PT 175-186 (80' ELCOs); the four CPB boats and PT 362-367 were assigned to RON18.
b. PT 41 is described as the only RON3 boat in service by April 1942. However, PT 34 was lost in a running gun battle with four Japanese aircraft on 9 April 1942, so at least one other RON3 boat was in service.
The correct information, supported mainly by primary documentation (text, photos, and plans), is readily available and has been for years. Some of the most important documentation (e.g., The MTB Manual, technical specifications for PT 565-624, gun mount manuals for the DeWandre and MK 17 mounts, and At Close Quarters by Bulkley) are even available online.
U.S. Patrol Torpedo Boats in World War II, 1939 - 1945 OverviewThis is a comprehensive illustrated history of PT boats in World War II. The author, a lifelong student of PTs, briefly describes the pre-war experimental boat designs to give the reader a lead in to the war-time boats. He then covers the four classes of PT boats in service with the USN in World War II, describing the differences from boat to boat in detail. Every weapon system used on board US PTs in WWII is described and discussed, from machine guns to rocket launchers. For the first time in any great detail, the author gives a history of the six known all gun gunboats which were converted from PTs (three Elco and three Higgins) and has both drawings and photos of these gunboats (including John F. Kennedy's PT-59). Model-builders will appreciate the drawings that contain actual color chips for the various camouflage systems applied to the boats. There are also many color photos to aide modelers in painting accurate paint schemes. The author also discusses and identifies each of the radars used on PT boats in the later stages of the war. A substantial chapter on operational experience discusses how PT boats were used in every theater of war, from Pearl Harbor to D-Day and beyond. Finally, the author provides the fate of every PT boat that now survives. One hundred forty-eight photographs and drawings.

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